Emerson User Group EMEA in Brussels, Belgium – 12th – 14th April 2016

“Seems to me that #EMrex is focusing not so much on new technologies, though important, but looking closer at how we do things.”our tweet on day one.

Brussels looked lovely on the morning that the Emerson User Group meeting opened. There was little to suggest the trauma that the city had faced just a few short weeks previously as delegates strolled through the sun-lit streets to the conference centre. The security however was markedly tighter as we entered the building however with strict adherence to the best security practices. However once inside the building things were as normal.

Speaking with the organisers it promised to be a bumper event, stretched as it was over three days examining all aspects of automation, experiences, applications and of course exciting new products and concepts. The attendance was slightly down on the last time in Stuttgart, some were reluctant to travel, others were unable to make it due to the inability of the severely damaged to adhere to a normal service. Those who attended were in part in broad agreement with the message penned by Emerson’s Travis Hesketh – Standing up for Brussels. Indeed the User Group very quickly confirmed after these terrible events that they were going ahead with #EMrex. At several of the social events at the periphery, like the evening reception for publishers and journalists the people who suffered were remembered.

The venue was a modern conference and the one hundred or so presentations and industry forums were stretched over about six floors including an exhibition floor and at the very top of the building was a cyber café and a wonderful panoramic hall with the breathtaking view (featured at the top of this page from a tweet by Emerson’s social media guru – Jim Cahill)

But on to the the meeting!

Peter Iles-Smith of GlaxoSmithKline opened proceedings as chair of the Users Exchange Board. He welcomed the over two thousand delegates from so many countries through out the EMEA who travelled for the event.

Steve Sonnenberg, President Emerson Process Management (pictured right) and Roel VanDoren, their President in Europe, in a joint presentation entitled “New Reality, New Opportunity” addressed the changes and challenges facing companies in the 21st Century. They did not talk about products or applications but on ways of doing things. Indeed during the presentation we tweeted: “Emerson’s approach – yes equipment, but more importantly perhaps is attitude or culture.”

Nobody does business the way they it was done even twenty years ago, when the internet was a baby and nobody imagined never mind thought possible social media platforms like twitter, yet in many cases industry is way behind in adapting to change. Possibilities are there which were inconceivable a short time ago and these need to be harnessed for the good of humanity.

Research into these possibilities, new technologies are leading to changes especially the importance of planning including all stakeholders at the earliest opportunity. This thinking is leading to an innovative technology and engineering-based approach for improved capital efficiency such as their Project Certaintyapproach which aims to tackle complexity by decoupling the dependencies suppliers have on each other, eliminating bottlenecks and allowing concurrent work streams. In a word it aims to transform capital investment and releasing the frightening amounts of money currently being lost in big and not so big projects.

And these figures are frightening. If the type of approach spoken of here is adopted savings of up to €400 Billion (yes BILLION) would be released to invest in, for instance, production, reliability, safety, energy, training, security and innovation.

So what is involved?

Xavier Marchant, (right), Emerson’s Vice President Process Systems and Solutions in Europe, gave dramatic examples of the possible savings in labour and materials. For instance the decision to use smart junction boxes in a large project could save both money and space (95% in control room space). Spare parts are another area where there is phenomenal waste. He quoted a spokesman from a International Energy and Chemical Company, “On our last construction project we overspent on maintenance spares to the tune of €50,000,000…we just wrote it off….because we did not have a robust spares analysis process.” Reduce the complexity by the involvement of stake holders at the start of planning for a project and allowing them to develop it side by side. One simple idea is to separate software from hardware in the development. The “old way” is to tie them together from the start whereas this way the software can be developed using virtual systems and then later on when the actual operation is seen to work in the virtual world (he called it virtual FAT – Factory Acceptance Test) it may be introduced to the real or concrete world – or “late binding” as he called it.

Virtual FAT has far less chance of harming one than the real thing?

He quoted François Davin of Sanofi “Emerson’s Remote Virtual Office allowed us to collaborate with experts and resources from multiple sites to conduct our Factory Acceptance Test (FAT). The result was less travel and site disturbance to our operations. Also, more operators could participate remotely which improved the new automation system adoption.”

We were introduced to the concept of quartile performance and their site Top Quartile Performance is a exposé of how they view this as a concept and how it is influencing their thinking as a group.

Of course all these changes would be impossible without the availability and enthusiastic embracing of the so-called “new” technologies. Peter Zornio (right), Emerson’s irrepressible Chief Strategic Officer, gave us an insight into these and how the company is using these and its co-operative involvement with the pioneers in these , the Internet of Everything(CISCO), Industrial Internet (GE), Smart Planet (IBM) and The Internet of Things (Microsoft). These technologies, and others embryonic or not even conceived of are guiding the current and future development of technology used in the manufacturing and processing sectors.

Keynotes: The Emerson User Exchanges whether in the USA or EMEA always have exciting and inspirational keynote speakers each day. This event was no exception. Jack Uldrich, a futurist spoke about future-proofing business. The majority of businesses are not ready for what is happening in the real world or for the speed at which it is happening.

Another of these speakers Prof Jan Rotmans who spoke about change. He maintains that we are not living through an “era of change” as a “change of era!” Many of us are in the old era, our mobile phone is just that, we read newspapers, buy books in bookshops. Our kids live on their mobile phones, they are their liveline. We are “old-fashioned” our kids are “cool!” Change is disruptive and the old ways are totally unable to cope. The old top-down certainties are dissolving and the “common man” is taking charge, sometimes violently. Chaos is the name of the game.

Finally a veteran at EmrEX, David Beckman, brought all the thoughts and ideas of New Reality, New Opportunity together. In view of Rotmans’ talk earlier the title he chose was more than relevant as he introduced delegates to the “Worst Case Scenario Survival Handbook.” Although he prepared us for worst case scenarios he described real opportunities for industrial automation.

Presentations. The various threads were divided into five headings or sectors, Business & Projects; Operate Safely, Securely and Legally; Process Optimisation; Maintenance & Reliabilitym and, Control System Applications & Migrations and were held through each of the days.

Forums: There were also Industry Forums with panels and general discussions on the various specialities e.g. Life Sciences or Refining & Petrochemicals. These were opportunities for participants to learn and exchange information and experiences with each other.

Training: There were also training sessions and other sessions (called Roadmaps) on Emerson products and possible future developments.

Solutions EXPO: Of course no event is complete without actually seeing product and EmrEX is no exception. The floor was divided under the same zone headings as the threads of presentations above. (See sketch on left).

There were several unique exhibits. One was the Operations Centre of the Future. This was an imaginative presentation of a plant with a H.A.L. like computer responding (or not) to commands or requests from the operatives. It featured a drone delivery of spare parts and a really effective alarm situation which featured a realistic vibration of the floor. Of course the real message is that though it is the future most of the technology used is possible today.

Of course the Project Certainty concept featured prominently in the Business & Projects area and we were show possible scenarios. They had also rather bravely set up a wall where delegates could post what they consider are the features that should be addressed in projects. This should help “to focus ruthlessly on what’s directly relevent to a company strategy.”

Of course there were actual instruments on display to examine and handle.

Notable was this industry first, the Rosemount X-well system, a wireless transmitter, accurately measuring process temperature without need for thermowell. Accurate process temperature measurement is possible without requiring any intrusions or penetrations into the process, allowing for quicker and easier installation along with simplified long-term maintenance. Users do not have to design, size or maintain thermowells. Wake Frequency Calculations are eliminated, as well as time spent determining material compatibility, the right insertion length and the necessary profile.

Also the new Emerson Wireless Pressure Gauge created quite buzz among delgates. Th“This new gauge design fundamentally will change how customers use pressure gauges by helping them make better business decisions!” It is another industry first. Does this signal the end of the Bourdon Tube?

Energy management is of course critical in all processes. It is effected not only by cost factors but also by legislation driven by concerns on pollution and global warming. Here Emerson demonstrated some prototypes of monitoring and control equipment not yet available. They emphasised savings on space occupied and of course ease of use by operatives.

Another very popular item was on the Maintenance & Reliability Zone. Here was an opportunity to experience the immersive training simulator. A goggle like apparatus was placed on the head and using a game-like hand piece the engineer is able to travel through a plant and see where various problems may be without any danger to him or her. It is a fascinating experience and one really feels that one is travelling through the plant rather than sitting or standing in a control room or office. In this picture we see Emerson’s Chief Blogger, Surface Dweller, Head of Social Media enter the virtual world for real! We can confirm that he returned to real reality afterwards.

Around the periphery of the EXPO were the booths of companies which compliment the Emerson offering – what they call their complementary and strategic partners.

There was also a section dedicated to history featuring milestones in science and automation over the years. It was a demonstration of change in the past. What will feature in future shows? The new opportunities taking advantage of the new realities of the past.

Always a major highlight of the Emerson User Group events is waht the call the “Networking Event.” This year was rather unique in that it was a visit to the Museum of Fine Arts and the Magritte Museum. This was an unique opportunity to see the best of Belgian painters – creativity of a different type than that extolled during the day sessions. Artists such as the Brueghels, Rubens, Jordaens and Magritte were enjoyed during this evening. Food and beverages were served – Belgium is famous for its beers of course but it also has its own cuisine and of course it’s chocolate is to die for.

This years event, despite the unexpected difficulties, was on a par, indeed because of these difficulties had perhaps more user participation than previous ones. There were many exciting things to see, concepts to understands and friends with which to share experiences. And of course fun with a capital F.

Look at this and tell me people weren’t enjoying themselves! (Twitter pic ‏@Julian_Annison)

• We have written about our travelling experiences to and from Brussels in our personnel blog (Sa Bhaile: (“Home” in Irish). These were relatively smooth if labourious but there is indeed no comparison to the experiences of Nick Denbow of ProcessingTalk which he outlines on their blog: My worst week as an air traveller!

Unfortunately we were unable, in any detail, to follow this years Emerson User Group love in. It took place high up in the Rocky mountain city of Denver (CO USA) and certainly looked like a very full programme with the usual enthusiastic plethora of tweets submerging our twitter feed, such as “Great venue, great presentations, great networking, great week – I’m #Elevated!” from @ChristopAmstutz. And obviously singing from the same hymn sheet @MCChow_88 with “I truly had my experience elevated this past week @EmersonExchange!” Obviously all were on a higher plane – or altitude than us mere mortals at sea level!

A new item (as far as I can remember) was a feature which included those who were unable to be in Denver who were invited to participate in the final “Ask the Experts” – seven gurus with all information and knowledge on the topics featured in the four packed days of information sharing. The @EmersonExchange twitter constantly referred to the various forum posts questions and solutions of interest to users.

There were news letters and videos published on a daily basis which helped inform people not present what was happening. This was also useful for those attending but who had to make choices as to which presentation to attend.

The next User Group Meeting is scheduled for Europe in Brussels (B) in April 2016. Emrex Americas is planned for later next year in the Capital of Texas, Austin – 24-28th October 2016. And if you wish to plan even further ahead the 2017 event is to be held in Minneapolis.

The Emerson Global Users Exchange in Europe was a three-day event for existing and potential users of Emerson Process Management products and services. The event was held from 1-3rd April 2014 in Stuttgart, the capital of the German Land (State) of Baden-Wurtemburg (D).

Many memories sprang to mind as the Aer Lingus flight from Dublin touched down gently at Stuttgart Airport. It was over forty years since I had been there on a training course – in pneumatic instrumentation – in a local company which has long since been swallowed up , much like pneumatic controls, in the advances and takeovers since that time! There on the surrounding hills was the emblematic fernsehturm, the very first television tower in the world and a symbol of a resurgent city recovering from the ravages of total war.

I was travelling to the Emerson Exchange User Group meeting (Tagged #EMrex on twitter) of the European, Middle East & African region along with over 1,200 others anxious to learn of the experience of others as well as learning of any new “goodies” Emerson themselves might have to unveil! This was the second such event in Europe, the last was also in Germany in the city of Duesseldorf, two years ago – see Automation returns to Duesseldorf. Of course the User Conference for the Americas has been held annually for a number of years (see our Reports here!)

The event started with a plenary session where everybody gathered in the main hall to hear the schedule for the three days, a business update on Emerson and a technology update.

Delegates were welcomed by Francisco Diaz-Andriu, of Repsol, Spain and member of the Board of The Emerson Users Group. He has been active in automation in Spain for many years and was the founding president of the vibrant International Society of Automation (ISA) Spain Section, in which he is still active. He gave a preview of what attendees could expect during the three days. He outlined the work of the user group in the organising of the conference and the composition of the board. Needless to say they are always looking for new members to broaden the application expertese available to future events.

The Porsche factor!

Roel van Doren

Emerson’s European President, Roel van Doren, started with the first presentation talking about the company’s philosophy. A great company is a company that asks the right questions. Instead of, “What can we sell you?” or “What do you want to buy from us?” a great company asks its customers questions like, “What is your vision for the way your plant should operate?” or “How can we work together to solve your problems?”

This kind of collaborative approach to the customer relationship is the essential idea behind the strategic direction Emerson is taking. Taking his cue (excuse the mixed metaphor!) from one of the companies for which Stuttgart is famed far and wide, Porsche, he drew a comparison, “Like the pilot of a high performance race car you face many challenges that come in your direction at an ever increasing speed. And like a pilot, you must be able to react quickly to those challenges. You need to be able to fully trust the team that’s behind you. Our hope is that you will trust us to be the business partner that you can rely on, and that you will trust us to be part of your team. Because when the right people with the right technology come together, magic happens.”

The Plenary Session

Pervasive Sensing
The Chief Strategic Officer of Emerson, Peter Zornio, can always be relied upon to give an interesting presentation and this year proved no different. He spoke about the expansion of the Emerson offering from being merely process control towards an all-embracing monitoring of the entire operation, whether in the process area or in the peripheral areas within and without the premises. He introduced us to the iOps concept – Integrated Operations. As technology has developed so has it been possible to see what is happening in all areas of the plant – in real time. It calls for a clear, up-to-date view of what’s happening in all aspects of an operation. This assists in more efficiency, increased staff effectiveness and therefore more productivity. By using what they have named Pervasive Sensing they have adopted a policy based on the axiom “You can’t improve what you don’t know!” With this philosophy it is possible to prevent problems rather than react to them.

The iOps centre during a demonstration.

Later we had the opportunity to visit the iOPs facility set up on the Exchange exhibition floor where demonstrations were a big attraction.

Think for change
An entertaining keynote was given by Dave Beckman, a former marketing executive with Emerson and who now spends his “retirement” as a speaker to the process industry. He advocated thinking outside the box,not to be afraid to be on the edge. He also was optimistic for the future as countries suddenly realised that they ought to rely on their own resources.

He cited the example of the United States which has changed almost beyond recognition. This has largely been the result of the technology which allows the extraction of shale gas. It has changed everything! Suddenly this huge country is again self sufficient in fuel. This is going to happen elsewhere too as the political situation changes due to economic circumstances. And things are changing to make previously unthinkable policies suddenly acceptable. Witness the effect of the Fukashima disaster! All nuclear power stationa are now being closed down in Japan and in Germany. What are these great countries to do for energy?

Keeping up!
In some way it may be said that a person who attends one of these multi-thread conferences has a disadvantage over the person who is sitting at his desk following things on twitter. I did attend one or two of the sessions as well as the afternoon press conference at which details of new products and applications were given. Links to these may be found in the box.

The Exchange daily news was emailed to all who requested it on each evening and these gave an excellent resume of events.

But of course nothing can compare with the networking at these events. Now in the age of social-media, one knows a lot of people without ever meeting them. Conferences like this are an opportunity of meeting people whose tweets or contributions other social networking platforms you have been followed. This was no exception and besides meeting many European and American press people like Keith Larson of Control, Nick Denbow of Industrial Automation Insider and John McKenna of Process Engineering. We also had the chance to meet the very active, possibly the most active in automation, Emerson Twitter cluster including Jim Cahill, Chris Amstutz, Nick Taylor and, for the first time, Mike Boudreaux.

Social aspect
There was a social aspect to this as well and many hostelries in the city benefitted from delegates sampling Schwaebish cuisine. This correspondent and his companions for the evening couldn’t have had more praise for the Stuttgarter Staeffele – (Your restaurant for Swabian specialties!). German food has an ill-deserved reputation for being somewhat stodgy but a visit to this 40 year old restaurant will, without doubt, change any such preconceptions.

There was also a group event which was a visit to the Porsche museum to tittalate the little boy in many as they drooled enviously over these glorious machines made with such precision and care. There are over eighty vehicles on display. We are not sure how many orders were placed as a result of this visit!

• The next Emerson Exchange Users Exchange is scheduled for the Americas. It will be held in Orlando, (FL USA) from 6th to the 10th of October 2014. Maybe you’ll be there.

Combining the Elements of Success

“Looking forward to a great week. #EMRex or Bust!”
This was one of the tweets the last weekend of September which reminded us that the annual #EMrex Fest was about to be launched this time in a place called Grapevine. (Hence our crazy headline!). Last year’s EMREX was in Anaheim California and it’s

The Emrex Board!

Emerson Global Users Exchange, said the Chairman the Emerson’s User Group, Savannah River Nuclear Solutions’ Tracy Waller, presents an “opportunity for “Combining the Elements” of success to impact your company’s bottom line.” He did add that “the value you gain from Exchange is limited only by the amount of knowledge you can absorb while attending.” And that is true without a shadow of doubt. That tweet about a great week reminded us poor twitter watchers that an avalanche of tweets was about to descend bearing the hashtag #EMRex.

America is a big and far-away place and Grapevine, Texas is about six or seven hours behind Europe so the #EMrex tweets usually start coming in at about 11.00 Irish time. However on the first day it looked as if some of the afficianados didn’t go to bed at all as tweets were waiting to be read as we opened our laptops on this side of the mighty Atlantic. As one tweet said “Should be interesting to watch Emerson Exchange through Social this week!”

Tracy Waller opened @EmersonExchange welcoming attendees from 50+ countries. We learned that there were 2834 in for the opening of which 500 were from countries outside of the US. As we are using tweets to compile this report one statistic given was EmersonExchange 365 (the Emerson User Community!) has grown to over 9000 members! “What a great way to connect to other like minded professionals!” Another stat reported “350 workshops and exhibits this week,” and another confirmed Waller’s comment above, “Over 350 workshops, forums, keynotes- more content than any single person can attend.”

Let’s go!

So what happened? Steve Sonnenberg, Emerson Process Management leader, welcomed attendees noting that a third of attendees were first-timers. It is primarily “an unmatched opportunity to learn what others are doing,” he said. “You invest your trust in us…I want Emerson to be a listening organisation!” Another tweet reported “Emerson Process grows, expects inflection in last half of 2014. Emerson continues to invest in the business..” The term “inflection” in this context is new to this writer however we assume that it means that the speaker foresees a measurable upswing towards the end of that year. Perhaps one of the reasons is the feasibility of pervasive sensing as it becomes cheaper and easier to deploy due to wireless technology and this will neccessatate the implementation of a policy that ensures that they can serve. The message strongly coming through was “When you run into obstacles or need a hand or just some advice, you’ll trust us to be part of your team.”

Shiny stuff time!

Peter Zornio in full flow!

“Nice to get the biz update – But show me the technology!” is a nice introduction to the presentation of the irrepressible Peter Zornio, Emerson Process Management’s Chief Technical Officer. “Peter Zornio warned us to fasten our seat belts, before he goes through the shiny new things.” He highlighted “12 products going through human centered design process” at Emerson. Our tweeters were hard put to keep up with this roller-coaster ride. “New technologies in Coriolis, DP level, DP flow, Vortex flow, Temperature, Analyzers… lots!” were unveiled. We have taken some tweets at random! Make sure you have a reviving cup of coffee at hand!

Shopping for diamonds!:

“Worlds first total wireless radar now available!”

“Emerson extends lighter weight and technology of Micro Motion Coriolis meters to its density and viscosity meters as well!”

“Look for the official retirement party here this week for Provox and RS3 systems.”

“Pervasive sensing will more than double the number of sensors in a process facility!” and “Site safety, reliability and energy efficiency will benefit from pervasive sensing!”

“New combined WirelessHART and WiFi gateway!”

“iOPs is where it all comes together to connect the business to the process loop!”

“We are building the future of operations.”

“I feel like I’m shopping for diamonds!”

And finally “Hard to keep up with P. Zornio #EMRex #ToMuchShinyStuff!”

Under promise and over deliver

Mark Thompson co-founder of Virgin Unite Mentors, Sir Richard Branson’s network for executive coaching and entrepreneurial innovation delivered a keynote. He spoke about how to inspire building leadership skills to inspire 10x performance, learn more. Risk is a very hard thing to take on, and we need to support our teams to take on that risk.The importance of trust, “Trust– exceed expectations… Under promise and over deliver.”

It was interesting how all three opening speakers reflected this philosophy, each in his own way.

Associated exhibition area

Always at these meetings there is an exhibition area where delegates may get their hands on product or learn in more detail about actual applications. There are exhibits from Emerson companies and from supportive companies and this is usually a very busy networking area.

ISA Bookstore up and running. Stop on by & see #PAuto titles.

On twitter this usually translates to “Come see us at booth XYZ!” or “Our awsome display at #EMrex, with a picture of an empty stand (or booth as they are called in the US), with 3 or four eager company representatives or (if they are lucky) a set scrummage of backs heaving to get at the goodies! Maybe not too exciting but twitterati at the event are sometimes made aware of something that they might miss otherwise. However those who post short videos on what they are doing can be enlightening. For those actually attending of course the experience is…well here’s a tweet, “Two hours into the exhibits at #EmrEx and it is still humming..” Nuff said!

Talking about videos, the collection of videos being published about the show are another way of getting the atmosphere and sometimes information. Look at Emerson Daily Exchange where there is a series of short videos to whet virtual appetites! Another useful resource during the week was Live at the Exchange, a review of happenings on a day by day basis with photos shared on-line, some of which we are using in this report. (tweet: “The Control Global team is here & publishing to Emerson Exchange365!“)

Break-outs
When attending this event it is always difficult to select which room to go to in which thread of automation. Following on twitter sometimes one is assailed by tweets from the various talks or presentations which can be confusing but also instructive as it can lead to exploration elsewhere for more information on the topic. This is especially fruitful where the presenter provides his power point presentation and/or notes on-line. We will just give a few tweet examples here.“Great discussion and thanks to our industry panelist’s – Monetization of #NatGas – O&G Industry Forum” “Life Science team at the ready for Continuos Process Verification solutions!” “Fort Worth 2: workshop by Madhav on how Emerson delivered Containerized DCS and OTS on time for fast track Project!” “Dallas3: Mr Nishimaki from KNGPG explains how #EMR #wireless solution benefited to achive high reliability” “Bob Huba highlights the importance of people and processes in #PAuto cybersecurity.” “Marlin Midstream changing the game – controlling valves wirelessly on a natural gas cryo plant!” “Killer talk on SynTQ PAT application by BMS on a Fluidized Bed Drying process and a Blending process!” “Cool! I just saw my safety dashboard video from the iOps Center at Emerson Exchange 2012.” (this from Mike Boudreaux!)“Kaleb Pergande provides a look at enhancements of the Fisher GX control valve over its 10-year lifespan.” “Aaron Crews outlines dashboards for risk mitigation to increase safety in our process facilities.”
“Wow ! Come and see Australia’s biggest iPad @ #emrex in workshop -SANTOS Brisbane Collabrative Control Center by Mike and Patrick!” “Be sure to get to the DeltaV roadmap sessions: Come and Meet Claudio the new DeltaV marketing Dir..” “This is cool: Session ID 8-5039- High Fidelity Modeling with MiMiC Simulation Software…” “Bring your laptop to the fire and gas workshop at #emrex we’re going to be working…” “Just watched @LouHeavner making APC theory look easy. Very impressive!” “Great presentation of how integrated operations powers you business potential at exchange by Mike Boudreaux and Suchit Rout.”“I saw a real LouLou of a presentation on VRU’s, 8-4939. Last chance tomorrow at 3:15!” (not sure what a LouLou presentation is but we assume it’s a compliment!)“Got out to see the Fisher Regulator Technologies HQ in McKinney this afternoon. Shiny and new, indeed!” “Three attributes of Pervasive Sensing, Jonas Berge tells me: wireless; non-intrusive installation; good enough measurement accuracy!” “So did you take Steve’s advice and meet 5 new people every day? Well, check out the Networking session today – 2.15, Dallas 6.” “yes , in fact meeting more than 5 people #emrex from different countries , having fun !” “Nice synergies presented at #EmrEx; Wireless leak detection on pipe-lines and tank gauging in refinery tank farm. #WiHART is the enabler.” “Cindy Scott presents the new DeltaV Executive Portal – view process graphics and create dashboards in IE for use in your enterprise!” “Want to be a rocket scientist too? http://ow.ly/24qdDU!&#8221; “Emerson research leader exits each meeting wondering, “How can a 58 year old have so much fun at work?” Easy: Fun problems/great people.”
…and so on! Can you feel the enthusiasm?

More fun
Can you take any more well of course there is the evening time when the sessions are over and what we in Ireland call “seissiúns” begin. This is party time and no Emerson Exchange is complete with out this kind of fun – or the real craic! And our tweeters are not idle here. “Knock Knock Knocking on Heaven ‘s Door #EmrEx. Emerson , LBP’s, and Exhibitors jammin’ it tonight on stage!..” “Dancing with @Merry120 and @DeannaDaisy. It’s an #EMRex tradition! As always, the band was awesome tonight!!” Maybe we should draw a veil over the rest of the evening.

“Best exchange ever this year. Truly lives up to expectations. Real connections and great interaction with and between customers!” “We had another good exhibition at #EMRex. Thanks for the great conversations! The Final Control booth is all packed up until next year!”

A great quiet has now descended on our tweet-feed as the participants return to their homes and mull and digest over the information they have received! And to a well earned rest!

And so to Stuttgart!
The last word I’ll leave with Nick Taylor: “Germany is beautiful in the Spring. Join us for #EMRex Stuttgart, April 20014!” And it looks like it will be as outstanding as the previous time this was held in Europe with a Record number of abstracts from users. Click here for more information on Emerson Users Exchange EMEA. Last year this was in Duesseldorf (D) and you can see what we thought in our article, Automation returns to Düsseldorf! (Oct 2012)

BTW The Americans will do it all over again in Orlando, (Fl USA) next October: 6-10 October 2014.

ReportsAs we come accross other reports in other locations we’ll link here!

Mickey Mouse continues to get a good name!

“Last day at #EMRex. Good ending to a great week.” So tweeted Chris Amstutz of Emerson Life Sciences. And as somebody who tried to follow the happenings in California’s Walt Disney town Anaheim, of the America’s Emerson Global Users Exchange I can vouch for the fact that this event, like the ISA’s Automation Week of last month, also qualified as NOT a Mickey Mouse affair.His tweet “3063 attendees – new record!” certainly proclaims that fact loudly and clearly

As we said in our earlier post, Ananheim Prepares…, we have attended this event virtually since 2009 in Houston. The 2009 event was in fact the first that we felt able to comment on without actually being there because of the quantity and quality of the tweets which eminated from it. As we said “Read-out, though not there in the flesh, felt very much there. Why was this? In a word, or rather two words “Social Media,“”

This time we had the added experience of actually attending the Emerson Global Users Exchange earlier in the year when it was held in Duesseldorf. This event, described by us in Automation returns to Duesseldorf,” gave us some idea of the sensory experience of what is now almost universally known as #EMrex.

Logos everywhere!
So what was Anaheim like? “Emerson has taken over Hilton Anaheim… Logos everywhere.” And another tweet: “So many very good offerings here at #EMRex going to be tough to decide what to attend….” And so it is with this reporter. Hundreds of tweets later we can see some of the riches in new products and applications. Remember this is a User conference, albeit heavily supported by Emerson, and some other vendors, and, as in the Europen event, it is heavy with applications and experiences, though these tend not to be as well represented in tweets as the new products and services provided by the principal. Also as in our European experience, a lot of the value in these events is not found in the public forums but in the private one-to-one encounters in the corridors, on the exhibitor floor or (perish the thought) at the bar! “How did you this? What did you find? What experience did you have using this system? Do you think this might work in our situation? etc etc.”

The daily e-report on happenings was another resource which dropped into our mail box every morning (see box of links below!)

The event was opened by Emerson Project Management leader Steve Sonnenberg giving an overview, “Automation technology is enabler, not end game. End game is to solve problems!” said one tweet and “We generally get high marks for products and people, but need to do better in other areas such as on time delivery,” quickly followed by : “We want to stop selling and start solving”. He pointed out that Emerson had hired 7000+ employees in the last two years and the company has now 0ver 37,000 employees around the world. “We are building the most robust supply chain in the industry ,” he is quoted as saying. And how’s this for an interesting statement: “America is Emerson Process Management’s largest growth area: “our new emerging market.””

The big revealNo Emerson Exchange has happened until Peter Zornio (left) makes his presentation. And the 2012 #EMrex was no exception! He presented us with what is perhaps the image of the week when he advised #EMRex attendees to “don their propeller beanies” for the new technology deep dive! (Your humble correspondent continued his induction in American culture as he had to look up “propeller beanies” in order to complete the unforgettable image that this request suggested!)

Shake you head ang get rid of the image as Zornio gives “The big reveal! Going to be an exciting year. DeltaV SIS V12! New Safety Logic Solver with SIS CHARMS!” I guess it’s a continuation of their CHARM offensive! The tweets continue: “World’s first wireless on/off control valve can turn manual valve into an automated one monitored by WirelessHART.” and in passing he gives a statistic: “Emerson Smart Wireless reaches 1 billion hours. Smart Wireless applications cross one billion instrument-hours of operation.” These and other new developments are covered in the releases issue to co-incide with the event.

One of the tweets mentioned a phrase I wasn’t familiar with (Probably had heard of it but I can’t remember everything) and quick as a flash (warptime?) Jim Cahill, who else, came back with a reference he’d posted in 2008! This shows the immediacy of social media, me in fairly remote Conamara on the western coast of Europe get an almost instantaneous response from the west coast of the Americas. Thanks Jim.

Authors: Blevins, Wojsznis & Nixon

Books for sale!
Suddenly this from ISA’s Susan Colwell, “ISA Bookstore has been hopping since early a.m! See new titles on display!” and this before the exhibition area was opened. Apparently this was the case during the whole week. There were many books on offer from their range including some newly published texts from Emerson or Emerson associated authors like Terry Blevins, Mark Nixon and Willy K. Wojsznis (see tweeted pic) whose work, Control Loop Foundation – tools, trechnologies and applications, was released a few weeks ago at Automation Week. Last year these authors we’re award winners of ISA Publications Award for best selling book of 2010 with their previous book, Control Loop Foundation—Batch and Continuous Processes. (A more recent tweet from Automation World’s Gary Mintchell, shows his own autographed copy!)

Customer comment: “That’s the sexiest product on the floor this week!”

Phone and email are transient. We lose this knowledge. By making things public, we create resources for others to find answers.

The first thing companies do with new technology is ban it.

Having one set of controls for both plants reduced control system hardware costs by 10%. Chad Sewell, Areva Resources Canada.

And this perspicatious remark, “Young people are more committed to their craft than to their job!” and “‘When you give people more operating power at home, they want the same thing at work. We have to grow with the times.’ – Steve Elwart”

And lots lots more. This is just a limited selection of the miriad of tweets send during the week. I hope this helps to give a flavour of the wealth of information some serious, some trivial and some frustrating to this particulat sweet tooth (What I wouldn’t give for a taste of that Lemon Cake!).

Emerson’s first Global Users Exchange (#EMRex) in Europe was a three-day event for existing and potential users of Emerson Process Management products and services. The event was held from 29-31 May 2012 in Düsseldorf (D).

Automation on the Rhine!

Düsseldorf was for many years the Mecca for Automation professionals and afficianados. The memories of those of a certain age will recall with pleasure the visits to the incomparable Interkama and the perhaps even more memorable visits to the Altstadt in the evenings. Its takeover and subsequent submersion in the huge Hannover Meße ended this relationship with the city on the Rhine.

Over 1000 delegates from over 40 countries attended the European Exchange and the format was similar to the Emerson Global Users Exchange held in Nashville, USA last October (2011). The event included General Sessions, Presentations, Industry Forums, Product and Services Roadmaps, Meet the Experts Sessions and a Solutions Exhibition.

The content was tailored to meet the needs of users in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and delegates could learn about best practices and see how colleagues are meeting new regulatory requirements, increasing yields, improving efficiency and reducing costs with enhanced automation. All of the content was in English, but with some presentations simultaneously translated into German and/or Russian.

Shaped by users, for users – the Emerson Global Users Exchange is managed by a Board of Directors, comprising users from a range of industries, who shape the conference content and guide the direction of the users group at large.

For tweeters!

Jim Cahill, Emerson Blogger & Eoin Ó Riain, Read-out Signpost

Those following Emerson tweets (#EMrex) or on facebook had the opportunity to meet Emerson’s blogger extraordanaire, Jim Cahill. He was inviting delegates to “come join the Emerson Exchange 365 Community.” It is an interesting fact that people who contact through the Social Web even if they have never met face to face are immediatly friends without needing to go through the ackward introductory phase. We were delighted to meet Jim and there was a picture take because as Jim said “Unless there is a picture nothing has happened!” (Read what Jim has to say: Recap from Emerson Exchange Düsseldorf!)

General Sessions
The opening general session on Tuesday includes a welcome from Ali H. Alawadhi, Emerson Exchange Board of Directors, Kuwait National Petroleum Company and Member of the ISA Kuwait Section. He emphasised that this was “by users, for users.” Emerson’s European President Bob Sharp and Steve Sonnenberg, Executive Vice President, Emerson and Business Leader, Emerson Process Management also spoke. Sonnenberg included users as “shareholders” in the company and the importance of their communicating with these shareholders. They continued to invest in people, local support and technology for customers in spite of the Global recession.

Ali Alawadhi welcomes delegates!

The guest speaker for this session was Euan Semple, a leading authority on the impact of the social web on the world of work. He presented a very stimulating discussion based partly on his experience in the BBC. Participation in the Social Web (He eshews the term “Social Media”) benefits those who participate. His statement that “We need more rubbish on the internet to improve the signal to noise level” excited much comment. Take a look at his website. Somebody tweeted during his talk declaring he was “one of the good guys!”

Because of the press conference we missed the keynote by David Beckman on the Wednesday however he had a wonderful session later with standing room only when he presented “Nail a speech – Launch a Career!” This 90 minute (twice the length of the usual presentations) was peppered with examples of excellent speeches for analysis including that of the late Steve Jobs to Stanford. Beckman’s presentation struck many chords especially for those hoping to “stop death by power point.” He stressed the importance of being able to present: “As soon as you move one step up from the bottom your progress depends of how you make a speech!”

Press Conferences
The Emerson press conferences were launches of new products making the business case for safety. Introduced by Jim Nyquist, President, Systems & Solutions. The theme was improving safety through the lifecycle.

Excellent calibration
One of these presentations was a fascinating exposé on calibartion in the Cork (IRL) facility of GlaxoSmithKline. Alan Gray of GSK described the project for an innovative, integrated PlantWeb asset and calibration management which went live in 2010. It was described as an Intelligent Application of Smart Technology which improves business results. It was the result of co-operation between Emerson, Beamex and GSK in an award winning project. There was a demonstration of the interaction between the various components in this calibration excellence programme which achieved significent improvements in the opearion of the business and the management of regulatory complience. More details on this application in our story Co-operation gives advanced calibration and asset management package (22/6/2012).

Industry Forums
Six industry forums took place on the second morning allowed open discussion between conference delegates and a panel of experienced professionals. The industries covered being: Oil & Gas, Refining & Petrochemical, Chemical, Power, Life Sciences and Engineering.

Each forum compromised short presentations followed by questions from the audience. For instance the Life Sciences Industry Forum helped us to learn and exchange information related to industry issues and trends, and the impact of these on the manufacturing environment . The forum discussed the future of automation within the Life Sciences industry with an emphasis on Skills and people development, Integration of IT and Automation/MES, Simplification of project implementation, and security. There was much discussion on attracting new blood as the industry becomes more complex and the experience of operatives diminishes as the older members of staff retire.

Roadmaps – Watch this space!
Eight roadmap sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday provided detailed information on products, services and enhancements that Emerson hoped to release in the coming months, along with insights into the strategy and technology guiding future solutions.

Meet the Experts
Concluding the conference on the final afternoon were two practical working sessions focused on the issues that process operations face and solutions that can be applied. Delegates could learn from and consult with the “experts behind the technologies” who led two separate in-depth sessions about Emerson’s DeltaV™ automation system and Ovation™ Expert Control System.

Solutions Exhibition
The Solutions Exhibition provided a unique opportunity to see Emerson’s newest and most innovative technologies – all in one airy hall. Delegates met with the experts behind the technologies and experience live, hands-on demonstrations of Emerson’s PlantWeb™ architecture and their products and solutions, as well as solutions from complementary companies and strategic partners.

The exhibition area was split into two with the main Emerson area covering the Solutions areas and Industry Applications while the overlooking balcony was reserved for complementary companies and strategic partners.

Packed floor at the Solutions Expo at Emerson Global Users Exchange

All in all it was a very well organised and thought out event with lots of information and ample opportunity for interactive networking.

• The Emerson Exchange Düsseldorf team has done a great job of gathering and posting pictures from the Event. There are over 170 pictures in the library. This is a link to the slideshow.

This year
This year they went “country” and Emerson Global Users Exchange (#EMrex) travelled to Opryland, Nashville (TN US) but for various reasons, including the fact that we were recovering from jetlag having travelled back from the ISA’s successful ISA Automation Week in Mobile (AL US) that weekend! This was an interesting juxta positioning as usually the #EMrex preceeds the ISA event. However be that as it may we were able to form some sort of impression of how things went – mostly from tweets and the very excellent newsletters provided by the team from Control. Links to these reports and others we have been able to find are to be found on the box at the bottom of this page.

Pic by Mike Boudreaux shows standing room only at keynote

The event started with an address from Steve Sonnenberg, the new (since last year) president of Emerson Process Management. Immediately tweets started flying. We learned there were approx 2850 delegates and that they all seemed to be crammed into the hall to hear the address. Indeed Mike Boudreaux’s pic was tweeted very early on showing standing room only. Despite the dismal and gloomy news we hear in the media these days he was optimistic about the future. Emerson had increased staff levels throughout the world although he did note that “in a sea of unemployment, we were unable to fill all our technical positions with qualified personnel.” However his main point was that Emerson personal were present primarily to listen. They were anxious to foster an atmosphere of trust among their users. Automation World’s Jim Chrzan commented favourably, “It was refreshing, to say the least, to hear a top exec talk about more than numbers. Sonnenberg’s honesty about continuing to build a listening culture is excellent advice for all business managers, and was appreciated by all.”

Down to work!
They had over 351 workshops and short courses throughout the week on a wide range of engaging subjects giving an excellent opportunity to learn best practices, see what colleagues and peers were achieving with automation and generate new ideas. There were industry and technology forums, product & service roadmaps, training courses and the possibility to meet the experts in all sorts of technologies and processes throughout the week.

Click for demo video voiced over by Jim Cahill

Something new
Something new introduced at this years event was Emerson Exchange 365. This is a way to keep #EMrex alive for the rest of the year! Jim Cahill, Emerson’s social media pioneer, stressed, “…it’s about connecting with Emerson experts and developers, but it’s first and foremost about bringing our customers together with each other!”
Here is the presentation from Jim Cahill and Mike Tongwarin on “How the Emerson Exchange 365 Online Community Benefits You!”
Europe ahoy!
Many times we have asked if this event will come to Europe and received answers which expressed an interest though hardly a ringing endorsement of the idea. “We’re thinking of it!” was the usual mollifying response. Well this year we got a positive response. “Emerson Exchange IS coming to Europe!” And so it is, dates and venues have been announced: Duesseldorf (D), 29-31 May 2012. So maybe Europeans, many of whom envy the excitement the #EMrex tweets convey, will have their own opportunity to tweet “Live from #EMrex on the banks of the Rhein!”

And still the eclectic tweets came!
We’ve collected a small selection of the hundreds of tweets (and pics) that were flying through cyberspace during the event. We hope they give a flavour of atmosphere experienced there.

Tweet: Mike Boudreaux

“Emerson wireless, 6100 networks installed with 580 million hrs of operation. Expect more products to come,”
“…tip…if there are people standing in the back of the workshop, scoot in to put empty seats on the aisle for them.”
“Our products (Pepperl+Fuchs USA) at booth 317 integrate well with PlantWeb and the overall Emerson platform.”
“Nail a speech, launch a career – Mr Dave Beckmann at Emerson Exchange #EMRex just starting. 90 mins of greatness,”
“People gathered outside the doorway for @thomsinger’s #EMRex session 5 Ways to Navigate Your Career” (see Mike Boudreaux’s pic – right) “Come visit booth # 319 to learn more about MYNAH & MiMiC Simulation Software,”
“…musician’s jam session again tonight in Washington B. Cold beer, great tunes, Nice Bike!!!!”
“Course “Web Devmnt Tools” has forward thinking tools & technologies that will be game changing! Worth checking out!”

“Great turn out for the On-line Batch Analytics talk from DSM Martek”
“HP editors forecast spending in HPI to exceed $222 billion in 2012. What’s the ROI? Attend ‘Best Practices in Asset Management!'”
“What was your favourite presentation, short course or workshop you experienced this week and …”

Healing? Heading?"

“Conferences are key to continued education. Academics can learn a lot from industry conferences and vice versa!”
@Rosemount_TG is healing in the Irish Pub after another successful day at #EMREX” (we feel sure that heading is what is meant…er maybe not! – see pic!) “Power cut at #EMRex. Michel Lefrancois from Lubrizol continues to present in total darkness”
“Lots of great Flow workshops at #EMRex today! Check out these sessions: 6A-2789, 6A-2638, 6A-2382, and 6A-2525.”
“Tim Highly was stuck in the elevator during power outage. Wow he has a great attitude and is laughing :-)”
“ISA Bookstore is up and running! Stop on by at #EMRex. Great Automation resources.” (I would put that in wouldn’t I!)
“Emerson Process announces Smart #Energy Initiative at #EMrex!”
“Tweet about Jim’s session about his blog for the new online community features! Social media overload…”
“My presentation “5 Ways to Navigate Your Career” is at 1:15 (right after lunch… so no sleeping in the audience!)”
“Day 3 of #EMRex, and show going on despite power issues. Nearly 2,900 attendees & big energy news is being made…”
“It’s hard to tweet in the dark….”
“Where are best slides from #EMRex? I thinking off the humor slides. They need to be uploaded at the exchange page!”
“I worked hard on the Rosemount Flow booth so be sure to check it out! :-)”
“The two smartest guys in Process Control I have ever met – Terry Blevins and Willy Wojsznis..”
“Thanks for best trade show ever at #EMRex and good luck to all us that have a 08:00 session in the morning.”
“Having great social media and brand recognition conversations with some Control Dynamics guys”
“Continue to meet new people at every break and plan for follow up (even though I am gone, I am still here).”
“I’ve picked lots of new twitter followers here at #EMRex and have started following others. Don’t stop tweeting when the conference ends!”
“We have received our first presentation abstract for Dusseldorf!”
“Neil Peterson is shouting at people to change the DeltaV default password – it’s all about security.”
“4th day of Emerson Exchange is coming to an end… Now time for some networking at the country music hall of fame…”
“Have a safe travel home from #EMRex and thanks for a good week”

I think it is safe to say that a good and instructive time was had by all and the social side of things was not ingnored. Lots of networking happened and will continue to happen and this cannot but have good repercussions in the wider automation community. And so to next spring in Duesseldorf and in the Autumn in Anaheim.

The last week of September and the first of October promise to be hectic for automation professionals endevouring to keep up with developments.

Emerson Global Users Exchange kicks off the frenzy on 27th September and continues until Friday 1st October. Last years was an exciting affair and Readout attended “virtually” and some of the streamed sessions were excellent. We wrote a brief report this in our blog as “Real and virtual at Conference.” This year they intend streaming some of the sessions again on the Livestream site. A facility is included to register so that one may be advised in good time when a presentation is to be streamed.

People may also follow the event on twitter using the #EMrex hash tag. It is surprising the amount of information that may be gleaned from these 140 character messages.

This event is being held in San Antonio (TX US).

In the same US state, down the road so to speak, in Houston, the ISA’s Automation Week is been held in the following week. It starts with the annual ISA Gala Event commemorating innovators and trail-blazers in the automation field throughout the world. This is on the evening of Monday 4th October.

The event proper starts on the next morning and the programme looks exciting and innovative. They have a facility on the website for visitors to plan their time there. They may navigate their way through the dozens of conference options with PathFinder. This assists them in selecting their own unique combination of sessions—a conference “path”—that shapes a learning experience suited to the participant’s individual job function and professional goals.

In preparation for this event the organisers have also instituted an on-line community, where participants may articulate their particular interests and perhaps meet. Called conference 2.0, through this new feature challenges can be identified and solutions can be proposed before the first stroll through the exhibit hall or the first word spoken by a speaker. Pat Gouhin, Executive Director and CEO of ISA commented that this feature “is designed to add to the intimacy and networking opportunities that are a key value proposition in the new ISA Automation Week model.”

ISA Automation Week may also be followed on twitter using the #ISAwk hashtag.

Read-out’s Eoin Ó Riain will be a virtual attendee at #EMRex but hopes to attend Automation week in person and hopes to meet his many twitter, LinkedIn and facebook followers and friends there.

Many of our vistors will remember our report, entitled #EMRex tweets rule, on last year’s Emerson Global Users’ Exchange and our enthusiasm because as a neophite in what is known as Twitterland, and indeed on social networking sites, we were able to participate vicariously or virtually from our office here on the wild west coast of Ireland.

We doubt that they will top the automation duel presented by Peter Zornio at this years event, but knowing the ingenuity and imagination of Emerson’s marketing people I wouldn’t care to put a bet on it!

Will Emerson Exchange top this?

In any case it is time to start planning to attend this years event. Again it is on during the week prior to the ISA’a Automation Week in Houston so it might be an idea to drive from San Antonio to Houston in time for the excitement there. (We speak in total ignorance of the geography of Americas biggest state and so are in ignorance of how far these two citys are from each other but you do have a weekend to make the trip!)

Emerson users who register for the Emerson Global Users Exchange conference by August 16 will save 29 per cent on conference fees. Registration for the 2010 conference – to be held from September 27 to October 1 in San Antonio, Texas, USA, is now available online.

Emerson Exchange offers one of the industry’s most comprehensive collections of user presentations and workshops on technology selection and application, investment justification, and automation strategy. The 2010 conference includes more than 300 sessions on topics from improving energy efficiency to increasing yields, improving agility, and making the most of automation investments.

I have never attended the Emerson User Group meetings in the United States, though I have attended them in Ireland and Britain, where they were called Manufacturing Excellence. In the past few years these have been superceded and maybe replaced by the US mammoth event.

Read-out though not there in the flesh felt very much there. Why was this? In a word, or rather two words “Social Media.”

The Twitter Experience!‘New to Twitter? Stop by the Twitter Station near Registration and the Cyber Café for help in setting up your Twitter account. The folks there can also assist you in making your mobile phone or PC “tweet-ready.” ‘

The long tail (bottom 80%) of twitter users accounted for more than 30% of the total volume.

According to Metcalfe’s law, the efforts of the twitter registration desk increased the value of the #EMRex twitter network by more than 650%!

What do you like most about the 2009 Global User
“Loved the added Twitter exchange, great to see see live posts!”
“There was so much good stuff I couldn’t see it all. :-)”
“Had a great conference. Emerson does a phenomenal job.”
“Just an incredible amount of new tech, great content, and even better conversations.”
“this workshop along was worth the trip!”
“It’s my 2nd one. What an opportunity to see and hear about the latest from EMR along with customers!”

For all the folks giving Twitter a try from #EMRex , tag any future process automation-related tweets you have with #PAuto

Your tweet on the big screen!
Emerson embraced the the new technology with a heart and a half and not for the first time showed how their openmindedness fosters real loyalty not only among their employees but also among their customers. About 166 people were tweeting both at and from without the meeting. Indeed most of the information listed here was first learned about from the tweets of people who were attending the different streams of talks.

A novel idea was their use of twitter and anyone who tweeted using the tag #EMRex featured on a big screen at the venue. They also featured these tweets on their Exchange Page.

This report could not have been compiled at all without the use of twitter. It really has been a remarkable tool in bringing information before those who tweet. And it’s free.

“Poof!” they’re gone!!
Live on our PC, Emerson’s introduced significant new products for process control and maintenance, including an industry-changing approach to I/O engineering, project management and field device maintenance. Design process includes personas and stakeholder maps. Goal to eliminate or reduce steps in process to get tasks done. And a whole lot more. “Poof and they’re gone!”

The most spectacular event live on our PC, (see picture above taken from screen grab of event as we viewed it on the web) when Emerson’s Peter Zornio introduced significant new products for process control and maintenance, including an industry-changing approach to I/O engineering, project management and field device maintenance. Design process includes personas and stakeholder maps. The goal is to eliminate or reduce steps in process to get tasks done. And a whole lot more. “Poof and they’re gone!”

Jim Cahill is the marketing communications manager for the Process Systems and Solutions business of Emerson Process Management and self-proclaimed “Chief Blogger”. He produced a number of commentaries on some of the talks and delivered a provocative presentation himself on how to thrive in chaos, a timely intervention.

Reports from the hacks!
Finally there are the reports of the Editors. As usual the ControlGlobal team were very active under the leadership of the inimitable and enthusiastic and incisive Walt Boyes. This team produced a daily resumé of proceedings and emailed this to their mail list. They are also available as html pages on the web and now as pdf issues downloadable from their website.